Activist Charged With Attempted Murder of Police Officers During Portland Riots

An Indianapolis man has been arrested on eight warrants out of Oregon, where police say he threw firebombs at officers and broke windows during riots last year in Portland.

FBI agents and Indianapolis police officers arrested Malik Muhammed, 24, Friday. He awaits extradition to Oregon on charges that include three counts of attempted murder, unlawful manufacture of a destructive device, two counts of unlawful use of a weapon, unlawful possession of a firearm, and unlawful possession of a loaded firearm in public, according to the Portland Police Bureau.

Muhammed allegedly threw a firebomb that scorched a police officer’s uniform Sept. 23, 2020, in Portland.

Police claim he also threw an “incendiary device” that failed to ignite at police officers two days prior. Muhammed was not arrested during either of those demonstrations. However, he was arrested in October 2020 after Portland police said he had caused tens of thousands of dollars in damage to windows in downtown Portland, including at the Oregon Historical Society, during a destructive protest that activists called the “Indigenous Peoples Day of Rage.”

Muhammed has also been active in the Indianapolis protest scene. According to reporting from The Indianapolis Star, he organized peaceful marches last summer and was criticized after hugging an officer during one march.

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